Devotional Thoughts for Today

“The Name of the Lord”

Exodus 3:13-15

Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

Moses asked the Lord, “What is your name?” A simple question, yet have you ever thought about that? We call God by certain names – “Lord,” “Father,” “Savior,” etc. But does He have a proper name? Asking someone their name is usually the first question you ask when you get to know someone. So, what is God’s name? Other deities have names – Marduk, Ra, Zeus, Pluto. Does the one true and living God have a name as well?

It’s amazing that we do not think about this more often because our God actually does have a name! We most commonly refer to Him as God or Lord, but that is not actually the Bible’s most common way to refer to Him. Over 6,000 times, the Bible uses a proper name to speak of our God. By comparison, the Bible uses the Hebrew word for “God” only about 2,000 times. What is this proper name?

Pardon me while I nerd out a bit. The proper name is derived from four consonants YHWH. Scholars are not 100% sure of the vowels, though most believe Yahweh is the right vocalization of the name. But this name is loaded with meaning. God answered Moses’ question about His name by saying, “I am who I am.” In Hebrew this is ehyeh asher ehyeh. Though most translations render this as “I am who I am”, this literally means “I will be who I will be.” Alright, so why don’t we call God ehyeh asher ehyeh? Well, God answers the question about his name a second time by shortening his response to just ehyeh, or “I will be”. But God’s name is not ehyeh either. God answers the question a third time in verse 15 by saying, “Yahweh, the God of Your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” If Moses were to talk about God, he wouldn’t call him “I am” or “I will be” because that would not make sense. Rather, he would use a the third-person form, “He is” or “He will be”. Yahweh is similar in pronunciation to the third-person form. But God paired His name with a description: He is the God of Moses’ fathers, namely, of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The same God who made the promises to Moses’ fathers is the same God who is with him now. His name signifies His faithfulness. He is the One who was, and is, and is to come. He is who He is and He will be who He will be, always. God’s name signifies His faithfulness.

Out of respect for the name, Hebrews in antiquity eventually started to say “Lord” instead of “Yahweh”, which is why we do not use the divine name frequently. Still, the Israelites were called to trust in the name of the Lord. This meant trusting in the God who keeps His promises. It’s in His very name to be faithful. He is and always will be who He is. That is His name.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, that Your name is faithful. I trust in Your name because I know You will always be who You are and that You will always keep Your promises. Help me to trust in Your name day by day.

Bible Reading for Today:Matthew 2

Lunch Break Study

Read Psalm 86:11-13: Teach me your way, Lord,that I may rely on your faithfulness;give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. 12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. 13 For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead.

Questions to Consider

What is the result of being taught the way of the Lord?

What do you think a “divided heart” looks like?

What is the connection between trusting God and worship?

Notes

According to this psalm, we are taught the way of the Lord in order that we may rely on His faithfulness. This is similar to what Jesus taught when he said, “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Walking in the way of Lord results in us relying on God’s provision and faithfulness in our lives.

The psalmist asks for an “undivided heart” in order to fear the name of the Lord (biblical fear is about honor and trust). If we have a divided heart, it means we are not honoring God and we are trusting in other things. This could be trusting in money, or worldly talents, or our thoughts/ideas, or countless other things. All those things turn our eyes away from the faithfulness of God. An undivided heart trusts that God is always faithful, in every way. An undivided heart is a heart that is fully surrendered to God.

If we do not actually trust in God, our worship is superficial. If we worship God on Sunday but then trust in ourselves Monday through Saturday, our worship is a lie. The psalmist says that he will praise the Lord God and this genuine praise is possible because the psalmist relies on the faithfulness of the name of the Lord. Note also that this trust has been built on experiencing God. As we trust in God, we experience His deliverance and this in turns builds our trust more. May we experience the love and deliverance of God in more and more ways!

Evening Reflection

Tonight, call on the name of the Lord. Remind your soul that He is the One who was and is and is to come. He will never change and His promises to us are sure. If you feel your trust wavering, ask God for help to build more trust. May this trust lead to greater worship of the name of the Lord!

Devotional Thoughts for Today

“The Potential of God”

Exodus 3:10-12

Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

When my daughter Audrey was an infant, some people jokingly called me a “tiger dad” because I kept trying to make her do things she obviously could not do yet, like trying to get her to lift her head when she was a week old. I really wanted her to be more advanced for her age, a feeling many first-time parents experience. Unfortunately for my new son Benji, I have swung the opposite direction and just figure he’ll learn to do things eventually. I guess my tiger dad days are over.

In our passage for today, God asked Moses to do something that he thought he could absolutely not do. God had a plan to rescue the Israelites from Egypt and He was inviting Moses to be a part of it. Specifically, God was calling Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him to free the Israelites. To this request, Moses said, “No way! You’ve got the wrong guy. Send someone else!” This seemed impossible to Moses. But what was God’s response? “I will be with you.”

Fear is a huge barrier to doing the work of God. Many of us have a fear of failure, a fear of not being good enough, of looking foolish. Yet, when that is our attitude, we are being self-centered because we are putting the focus on ourselves. Moses was being very self-centered – His response was “I cannot do that. I am not the right person.” But it’s not about being the right person; our God is the right God and whoever He calls is the right person for His work. Why? Because God goes with whoever He calls. He enables them to do the task.

After Jesus ascended into heaven, the early church did not run around trying to do things that Jesus did. They prayed and waited. Eventually, at Pentecost, they were all filled with the Spirit and empowered to do the work of growing the church. God was with them. Though it seemed impossible, God enabled them to do something that seemed impossible. In the same way, perhaps God is calling you to do something. Remember that you have the potential of God within you. He will enable you to do whatever He calls you to do.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, that You send Your Spirit upon me to do Your will. On my own, I would fail, but with Your Spirit I have Your potential within me. May I never fear failure knowing that You will carry me through Your purposes.

Bible Reading for Today: Matthew 1

Lunch Break Study

Read Exodus 31:1-4: The Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, 4 to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, 5 in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft.

Questions to Consider

What did God call Bezalel to do?

How did God enable Bezalel to do this?

Is the Lord calling you to do something right now?

Notes

God called Bezalel “to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft.” God was planning to build the tabernacle which was basically a tent that the Israelites would carry with them as their place of worship, and it also was God’s symbolic presence with His people.

Verse 2-3 tells us that “[God has] called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and [He has] filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship.” Was Bezalel a skilled craftsman before God called him? We don’t know, but he likely was not good enough to do what God called him to do. If you have read these chapters in Exodus, you know that the design of the tabernacle was very intricate. Bezalel needed the power of God through the Spirit to do this. God called Bezalel and gave him the ability to do the task.

Take time to reflect on this question. Invite the Spirit to speak to you and give you confidence that God will equip you for all the work He wants to do through you.

Evening Reflection

As you get ready for bed tonight, consecrate tomorrow to God. Say to Him, “God, I want to do what You want me to do tomorrow. Fill me with Your Spirit that I may do it by Your strength.” Imagine praying that prayer every night; God would certainly use you in mighty ways!

Devotional Thoughts for Today

“When He sees, He moves”

Exodus 3:7-8

Then the Lord said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

Homer Simpson—always the dispenser of great wisdom—says this in an episode of The Simpsons while running a red light: “If I don’t see it, it’s not illegal.” At face value, this seems ridiculous—just because we don’t see something does not mean we are exonerated from it. Yet, I imagine many of us subconsciously believe this. For example, we pass someone in need, pretending not to see that person. But as long as we do not see that person, we do not need to help him or her—we are exonerated. Perhaps you have even done that with hearing, too. Someone asks you to do something but you pretend not to hear, you ignore the request. For those who are married, maybe you do that with your spouse sometimes.

Though we are sinful people who can pretend to be blind and deaf at times, God is not like that. God said to Moses, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters” (v.7). The phrase translated surely seen is a Hebrew idiom, literally saying, “I have seen seen.” The verb is repeated twice to add emphasis. God surely saw the pain and suffering of His people and when God sees something, He moves. He does not turn a blind eye and pass on by.

And not only does God move, Hecomes down. The God of the universe who rules over everything is saying that He is coming down; He is getting off His throne to come and deliver His people from slavery. Further, not only does God come down to His people to rescue them, He brings them up. He did not just free His people and tell them, “Good luck out there in the desert.” He brought them up to the Promised Land, to “a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey” (v.8).

That is the pattern of God’s activity in our lives. He sees us in our need, He comes down to us, and He brings us up. What are you going through right now? Are there struggles or sufferings you currently face? God surely sees you. And when God sees, He moves. When you cry out to Him, He comes down to lift us up. Today, let’s cry out to God, knowing that He surely sees you and He will not pass you by.

Prayer: Lord, thank You that You see me. Who am I that You would even notice me? Yet, You see me and hear my cries. May I trust in You to always be my Redeemer—the One who comes down to lift me up. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Genesis 50

Lunch Break Study

Read Psalm 34:15-18: The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteousand his ears toward their cry.16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,to cut off the memory of them from the earth.17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hearsand delivers them out of all their troubles.18 The Lord is near to the brokenheartedand saves the crushed in spirit.

Questions to Consider

What does it mean that the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous?

What is the pre-condition to the Lord delivering His people out of their troubles?

To whom is God near and what does He do for them?

Notes

At the surface, this verse may seem to mean that God only looks towards those who are good, that you need to earn His attention. Yet, the biblical picture of righteousness is more about being in right relationship with God. The righteous are those who depend on God. God does not forsake those who depend on Him; rather, His eyes are always upon them, to help them in their every need.

The pre-condition is crying out to Him. This seems so straightforward, yet so often we try to do things on our own. We either don’t want God’s help or don’t think He’ll actually help us. But when we cry out to Him, He sees us and moves to deliver us. He is faithful! However, the way He helps may not be the way we want; that’s why dependence on God requires trusting that He knows what is best.

God is near to the brokenhearted and He saves them. As Jesus said of Himself, “a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench” (Matt 12:20). God is gentle to the broken and He hears the cry of those who are crushed in their spirit. Remember, the God who is all powerful is the same God who comes down to us in our need to deliver us.

Evening Reflection

This evening, cry out to the Lord. Be honest with Him about the things that are weighing heavily on your heart. So often we bottle up the things that burden us; release them to the Lord and ask Him for His help. Allow His peace to come to you as you sleep tonight.

Devotional Thoughts for Today

“The Lord Appears” Part 2

Exodus 3:3-4

And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”

Our church currently is going through Experiencing God, so I can’t help but use another quote today (I promise this will be the last one for this week): “God’s revelation of His activity is an invitation for you to join Him…When you are in the middle of God’s activity and He lets you see where He is working, you know God wants you to join Him.”

The Lord did not appear to Moses simply to say, “Hey buddy, how’s it going?” I cannot think of any time in the Bible that the Lord spoke to His people simply for conversation (please tell me if you know of an example). When God appeared and spoke to His people, there was a reason. God was up to something and He wanted to bring His people on board. God’s revelation is always an invitation.

God revealed Himself to Moses to call him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. God appeared to Gideon to lead the Israelites against the Midianites. God appeared to Ezekiel at the Chebar Canal to call him to prophesy to the Israelites. God’s appearance is always an invitation to join Him in what He is doing—we see this countless times throughout the Bible.

This means that God’s appearance demands a response. When God called Moses, he responded, “Here I am”—which is basically the ancient equivalent of saying, “I am ready to listen.” Moses turned his full attention to God. Though we know Moses was hesitant about the specific task given (which we will see later), Moses’ ears were turned to the Lord. He was ready to listen and respond.

How about us? Are we ready to say, “Here I am” when the Lord appears to us? Are we ready to respond to Him? Yesterday, we prayed for eyes to see God when He appears, but this appearance is meaningless if we do not respond. God’s appearance is always an invitation for us to join Him – will you accept that invitation?

Prayer: Lord, thank You that You reveal Your ways and purposes to us. Thank You that You involve us in what You are doing! Who are we to be included in Your plans, yet You choose to use us nonetheless. Please give us ears to listen and hearts to respond to what You say to us. May You use us for Your kingdom purposes. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Genesis 49

Lunch Break Study

Read Judges 6:11-16: Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” 13 And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15 And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” 16 And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.”

Questions to Consider

What was Gideon doing when the Lord appeared to him?

Why did God appear to Gideon? What did He say He would use Gideon to do?

What was the guarantee of Gideon’s success in God’s mission?

Notes

Gideon was working. He was beating out wheat, which was an ordinary task. He was hiding in a winepress due to the fear of the Midianites, but still the Lord appeared to him in the midst of the mundane.

God appeared to Gideon in order to invite him to be a part of God’s mission to rescue Israel from the Midianites. God said to Gideon, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do I not send you?” Though Gideon would be the unexpected hero, God appeared in order to set in motion a plan to use Gideon in a great way. Thankfully, Gideon eventually did get on board with God’s plans.

When God appears to us and invites us into His plans, He does not simply then send us off to figure it out on our own, saying, “Don’t worry, you got this.” No, he goes with us. Gideon asked how he would know that he could actually do what God asked of him. God responded by saying, “I will be with you.” That was the guarantee of Gideon’s success. We have the same promise, as Jesus said, “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).

Evening Reflection

Have you felt the Lord inviting you to partner with Him in some way? Perhaps you have recently felt a desire to serve in some capacity at church or maybe there is a friend or coworker you have felt led to share the gospel with, or maybe there is something else on your heart. Take time to say “yes” to God and commit to doing what He is inviting you to do.

The AMI QT Devotionals for February 11-17 provided by Doug Tritton. Doug, a graduate of University of Pennsylvania, is currently serving as a staff at Symphony Church (Boston), while pursuing a M.Div. at Gordon Conwell Seminary. He is married to Cindy and they are proud parents of Audrey and Benji, who was born this past December. Congratulations.

Devotional Thoughts for Today

“The Lord Appears” (Part 1)

Exodus 3:1-2

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed.

Imagine this scene: You are at your workplace – let’s say it is a normal corporate office building—and you are sitting at your desk. You get up to pick up something you just printed. But while standing by the printer, suddenly, you hear a voice calling to you. You look and it seems the Lord has appeared to you out of the midst of a plant in your office. How would you react? What would you do? Can you imagine this even happening?

This seems comical at face value, because it’s difficult for many of us to imagine this ever happening. Even as a pastor, I have a hard time imagining God visibly appearing to me when I am at our church office. But this is what happened to Moses. He was basically in his workplace, out in the wilderness keeping his sheep, which is what he did every day. He probably had a hard time imagining the Lord appearing to him while he was out keeping the sheep. His routine seemed too ordinary.

Maybe the Lord wants to meet with you in your workplace today—perhaps your office, your classroom, or wherever you work will be holy ground. Yet oftentimes it’s in the ordinariness of our daily routine that the Lord wants to appear to us. He might not appear to you out of a plant, but He may speak to you. But are you ready? Do you have ears to hear, eyes to see, and a heart to respond? Or are you too distracted with your work that you would not even notice God’s appearance. Henry Blackaby says in Experiencing God, “One of the greatest tragedies among God’s people is that, although they deeply long to experience God, they are encountering Him day after day but do not recognize Him.”

Today, keep your eyes and ears open to the Lord. I believe He does want to meet with us. So often we get so distracted at work that we leave the office having not even thought about Him once. Pray this morning for an attentive heart to the Lord. Even our workplaces can be places we meet God and see Him work.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for being a God who meets us where we are. We do not have to come to You to find You. There is not a temple where we need to visit to meet with You – the whole earth is Your temple and that even includes our workplaces. May we believe that You can meet us today. Give ears and eyes and hearts that are ready for You. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Genesis 48

Lunch Break Study

Read 2 Kings 6:15-17: When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

Questions to Consider

Why was the servant of Elisha afraid? What did he see?

What did the servant not see?

When you think about your work, in what ways are you seeing from a worldly perspective rather than from God’s perspective? How can you see things the way God sees?

Notes

The servant only saw an enemy army and this army was massive. In any worldly sense, Elisha and his people had no chance. They were a defenseless city against a large army. Naturally, the servant was terrified and could only see defeat.

Though from a worldly perspective, Elisha and his people were far less than the army of Syria, there was another army present that the servant did not see. This was the army of the Lord and this army was surrounding Elisha and his people to give them protection. From God’s perspective, there was no reason to be afraid!

Pray and reflect on this question before resuming your work for the afternoon.

Evening Reflection

Jesus said to his disciples in Luke 10:23, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see!” Ask God tonight to give you eyes to see God and what He is doing. Only God can open our eyes. Pray that tomorrow would be a day that you see God and see what He is doing around you.

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“God of All Comfort”

Exodus 2:23–25 (ESV)

“During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. [24] And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. [25] God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.”

We tend to do everything we can to avoid suffering and risk. And though we may invest a great deal in protecting ourselves and those we love, we fight a losing battle because we live in a world ruined by sin. We know this but we are still tempted to believe in our own strength and ability to control our lives. So when suffering and grief inevitably come, we are caught off guard. In our confusion, grief can be so severe that we find ourselves unable to even put our experience into words. We can only groan before God and weep.

In our passage this morning, the people of Israel are enslaved in Egypt. They suffer for 400 hundred years and they groan because of their slavery. Certainly they pray to Yahweh, but their suffering is such that they cry aloud indiscriminately, pleading that someone—anyone—might save them. And as Israel despairs under their oppression—God remembers, sees, and knows.

God remembers His covenant, the commitments that He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He remembers His promise to make them into a great nation, to bless them, and to bless all the families of the earth through them.

God sees His people. He is the Almighty God of galaxies but His people are always on His heart and mind. He is constantly concerned and at work for their welfare.

God not only sees, but He knows their suffering. Jesus is a high priest who sympathizes with His people.

Following a particularly difficult season of ministry, I was thankful that God gave me strength to get through it, but I had a lingering fear that He would bring me into something even more challenging and painful for my good. I saw God as helpful, but not very compassionate. Some time later, God spoke to me in prayer. He invited me to acknowledge how hard that season had been for me, and more importantly, He assured me that He was there and that He saw me and understood my pain.

If you are going through a difficult season, you are not alone. Your Father remembers His promises to you and He is fulfilling them. Your Father sees you. He has not forgotten you. Your Father knows the depth of your suffering. His heart is filled with compassion for you and He works for your future joy. Go quickly to the God of all comfort.

Prayer: Father, I thank You that You are more than a dispassionate engineer in my life, worried only about the mechanics and results. You are my Father, who loves me. Give me not only strength, but comfort as well that I may put all my trust in You. Amen.

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“The Heart of a Servant”

Exodus 2:16–22 (ESV)

Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. [17] The shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and saved them, and watered their flock. [18] When they came home to their father Reuel, he said, “How is it that you have come home so soon today?” [19] They said, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and even drew water for us and watered the flock.” [20] He said to his daughters, “Then where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.” [21] And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah. [22] She gave birth to a son, and he called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.”

When I was in college, I would go home from time to time to visit my parents (and do some laundry). Every time I would bring home a couple textbooks to study, but every time I would end up spending the whole weekend lounging around and relaxing—home was just too comfortable.

While our parents no longer take care of us the way they did when we were younger, after a long day, all of us desire to go home and be served—or at the very least be left alone. But often our desire to unwind is frustrated by lazy roommates, an inconsiderate spouse, or troublesome children. In our flesh, we see home as a place not to serve, but to be served.

After Moses kills an Egyptian, he is thrust out of his place of privilege loses all the comforts of home – wealth, power, and prestige. He is homeless, jobless, and alone. Moses finds himself in Midian, and there he serves the daughters of Reuel by standing up for them and watering their flock. He goes on to serve as a shepherd, a very humble occupation by Ancient Near Eastern standards. As he names his son Gershom, Moses is very aware that he is a sojourner, someone not yet home but on a journey and in a foreign land. This is not Moses’ home and this fact frees him to serve others.

When we mistakenly believe that this world is our home, a desire to be served at all times seeps into every area of our lives. If this world is our home, then all of our energy and time must be spent on accumulating the most possessions, accolades, and comforts of this world as possible. But according to the Scriptures, this world is not our home, and so we are free to set these things aside, and instead serve and care for those around us.

Prayer: Father, thank You that You have created me to live forever in Your Kingdom. May I not settle for the things of this world but yearn for my true home with You. In this life, give me grace to be like my Lord Jesus who came to serve, not to be served. Amen.